Students: Volunteer Work More Than Resume Boost

ROGERS -- Schools work to build volunteerism into the culture, but high school projects aren't something that will end just because they graduate, students said.

Gabby Molina, a 2014 graduate of Rogers High School, finished her senior year as vice president of Alpha, a student club aimed at involving Hispanic students with business professionals.

At A Glance (w/logo)

Graduate Volunteer Hours

A total of 104,844 volunteer hours were reported by 575 graduates in the Rogers School District this year. More than 1,000 students were to get their diplomas Friday. Students applying for credit or for the Graduate of Promise award report volunteer services hours to the School District.

Source: Rogers School District

She spent her last week in high school trying to get underclassmen to campaign for leadership roles in the group. She will attend the University of Arkansas this fall to get her degree in international marketing. She plans to join the college and professional chapters of Alpha, but wants to come back and visit the high school club. Molina said she wants to follow the example of the strong Latina teachers she had as a child in Los Angeles.

The club offers students the opportunity to learn about business, and a way to connect with leaders, things you can't just learn in school, Molina said.

"I see a lot of untapped potential," she said.

Students tell her they're too busy, but that's an excuse. Everybody goes through adversity, Molina said.

"It didn't feel like volunteering because I loved it," she said.

Volunteer work isn't uncommon for high school students.

Rogers administrators tracked 104,844 hours of volunteer service from 575 seniors in the class of 2014. Not all student volunteer work is reported. Students volunteered at organizations like the Rogers Public Library, Open Avenues, the Boys & Girls Club and Samaritan House; went on mission trips to Nicaragua and Honduras; and helped neighbors and visited nursing homes, according to Ashley Kelley Siwiec, district spokeswoman.

In Arkansas, state law allows for a high school credit for students who can demonstrate 75 hours of community service before graduation.

Volunteer service in the Rogers School District is part of the Graduate of Promise requirements.

"All jobs are service jobs when you think about it," said Robert Moore, assistant superintendent for secondary curriculum and instruction.

Community member input is the reason volunteerism is part of the Graduate of Promise checklist, he said. Service teaches empathy and helps students become more well-rounded, he said.

"You don't have to be number one to make a difference. You just have to care and to work," Moore said.

"It's kind a selfish reason to be selfless," said Madde Mauck, a graduate of Heritage High School.

Two years ago she started volunteering as the once-a-month guide to an autistic boy at Central United Methodist Church. She's also volunteered with mission trips to Dallas, Denver, Chicago and St. Louis. She's helped Link Crew at school, and with Special Olympics.

It's the people who make it all worthwhile, Mauck said. Her 6-year-old charge taught her patience -- some people need a little more time than others, she said.

She's looking at a future in international diplomacy, and wants to serve in Nigeria with the Peace Corps after graduation.

"It's not just for college credit. It's because we actually like to do it," Mauck said of volunteering.

The five-hour trip into the jungle during her first visit to Belize was a dose of culture shock, said Melanie Brecht, a graduate at Heritage. She's been to Belize three times with Fellowship Bible Church, and to Mexico. She shucked corn with mothers in their homes and played soccer with children.

Feeling like she made a difference is great, Brecht said, but she learned to be grateful for what she has.

"They almost gave me more than I gave them," Brecht said.

Brecht is considering a teaching major and will attend the University of Arkansas this fall.

Volunteer work cemented job plans for Megan Piotrowski, a graduate at Rogers High, and Arllyn Hernandez, a Heritage graduate.

Piotrowski visited Bellview Elementary School once a week during her senior year to tutor children. She's been on Cross Church mission trips to Indianapolis, St. Louis, Oklahoma City and New Orleans to improve those communities.

Something clicked for her when she handed a reluctant reader a book in the Chronicles of Narnia series and he told her he loved it.

"This is why I want to do what I want to do," she said.

This fall she will head to Dallas Baptist University for a teaching degree focused in English and reading, with a minor in Spanish.

Hernandez said she tutored before, but volunteering at the Rogers Public Library gave her a chance to work with groups of five to 20 children. She made crafts and read books with them, and will major in early childhood education at the University of Arkansas. She was awarded a scholarship for her volunteer work.

"I just wanted to see if I could work with children," she said.

Angel Gonzalez, A Rogers High graduate, also volunteered at the library during his senior year, shelving books and prepping craft projects and decorations. He is glad to see young people read.

"I come from a bad part of Los Angeles where nobody is excited for books," Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez will to go to Pittsburg State University in Kansas, majoring in astrophysics and electrical engineering. He worked as a senior representative on student council, and said he wants to work with student events at Pittsburg State. It's fun to make his students happy, he said.

Volunteering has helped him make friends with people he doesn't usually see around the school.

"It makes people open up and get out of their shell," he said.

NW News on 05/17/2014

Upcoming Events